Michael Andrew Nykoluk (December 11, 1934 – January 31, 2022) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and coach. He played 32 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1956–57. The rest of his playing career, which lasted from 1955 to 1972, was spent in the minor leagues. He became the first assistant coach in the NHL and won the Stanley Cup in that capacity with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1974 and 1975, before serving as the Maple Leafs head coach from 1981 to 1984. He was the younger brother of longtime Canadian Football League player Danny Nykoluk.[1]
| Mike Nykoluk | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Nykoluk during his tenure as coach of the Philadelphia Flyers | |||
| Born | December 11, 1934 Toronto, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Died | January 31, 2022 (aged 87) Naples, Florida, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 209 lb (95 kg; 14 st 13 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for | Toronto Maple Leafs | ||
| Coached for | Toronto Maple Leafs | ||
| Playing career | 1955–1972 | ||
| Coaching career | 1972–1984 | ||
Early life
editNykoluk was born in Toronto on December 11, 1934.[2] He played ice hockey and Canadian football when he was in high school.[3] He began his junior career in 1953–54 with the Toronto Marlboros of the Ontario Hockey Association.[4] He was part of the team that won the 1955 Memorial Cup,[5] scoring 13 points in 10 games in the playoffs that year.[6]
Playing career
edit
Nykoluk began his professional career with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League (AHL) during their inaugural season in 1956–57.[7] In the middle of that season, he was called up to play in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 32 games he played for Toronto, in which he scored four points, would be his only stint in the NHL. He was sent back down to the Americans and was subsequently traded with Ron Hurst to the Hershey Bears in exchange for Willie Marshall.[2]
Nykoluk went on to have a 14-season career with the Bears. The team won two Calder Cup during his career (1959 and 1969). He led the league twice in assists and amassed 50 or more assists in seven consecutive seasons (1963 to 1970). He was named to the AHL All-Star Second Team in 1967 and was conferred the Les Cunningham Award at the end of the year as the league's most valuable player. Nykoluk proceeded to hit a career-high 19 goals and 85 points the following season and was consequently selected for the AHL All-Star First Team.[7] He eventually retired from playing in 1972.[8]
Nykoluk's number 8 was later retired by the Bears.[5] He was part of the second class inducted into the AHL Hall of Fame in 2007.[7][9] At the time of his death, he was the Bears' all-time leader in games played (972), assists (636), and points (808).[5] He was also third in the AHL all-time in assists (686), sixth in points (881), and fifth in games played (1,069).[7][9]
Coaching career
editAfter his playing career ended, Nykoluk was offered a job with the Philadelphia Flyers as an assistant to head coach Fred Shero.[9] He became the first full-time assistant coach in the NHL.[8][10] During his tenure, the Flyers won the Stanley Cup in 1974 and 1975.[7][9] He subsequently became an assistant to head coach Shero with the New York Rangers,[9] and later served as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs for three seasons ending in 1984.[11]
Personal life
editNykoluk was married to Dolly until his death.[12][13] They met at his sister's wedding, where she was a bridesmaid. Together, they had four children.[3]
After retiring from coaching hockey, Nykoluk and his wife relocated to Naples, Florida, around 1990. He underwent a quadruple bypass surgery in April 2010.[13] Nykoluk died on January 31, 2022, at the age of 87.[5][9]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1952–53 | Weston Dukes | MetJBHL | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1953–54 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 59 | 19 | 28 | 47 | 12 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 4 | ||
| 1954–55 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 47 | 14 | 25 | 39 | 23 | 13 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 17 | ||
| 1954–55 | Toronto Marlboros | M-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 10 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 4 | ||
| 1955–56 | Winnipeg Warriors | WHL | 70 | 10 | 25 | 35 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 7 | ||
| 1956–57 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 32 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1956–57 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 28 | 9 | 13 | 22 | 30 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | ||
| 1957–58 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 69 | 14 | 37 | 51 | 45 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1958–59 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 66 | 15 | 38 | 53 | 60 | 13 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 15 | ||
| 1959–60 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 71 | 13 | 32 | 45 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1960–61 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 71 | 10 | 24 | 34 | 14 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 1961–62 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 59 | 4 | 20 | 24 | 13 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | ||
| 1962–63 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 72 | 7 | 36 | 43 | 21 | 15 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 2 | ||
| 1963–64 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 72 | 9 | 63 | 72 | 39 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1964–65 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 71 | 11 | 55 | 66 | 29 | 15 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 6 | ||
| 1965–66 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 67 | 10 | 53 | 63 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1966–67 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 72 | 16 | 68 | 84 | 26 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | ||
| 1967–68 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 72 | 19 | 66 | 85 | 30 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 1968–69 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 74 | 15 | 55 | 70 | 14 | 11 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 1969–70 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 72 | 16 | 57 | 73 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1970–71 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 71 | 14 | 39 | 53 | 33 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1971–72 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 62 | 13 | 30 | 43 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
| AHL totals | 1069 | 195 | 686 | 881 | 455 | 112 | 16 | 62 | 78 | 49 | ||||
| NHL totals | 32 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| Sources:[2][4] | ||||||||||||||
Coaching record
edit| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | Finish | W | L | Win% | Result | ||
| TOR | 1980–81 | 40 | 15 | 15 | 10 | — | 40 | 5th in Adams | 0 | 3 | .000 | Lost in preliminary round (NYI) |
| TOR | 1981–82 | 80 | 20 | 44 | 16 | — | 56 | 5th in Norris | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| TOR | 1982–83 | 80 | 28 | 40 | 12 | — | 68 | 3rd in Norris | 1 | 3 | .250 | Lost in Division Semifinals (MNS) |
| TOR | 1983–84 | 80 | 26 | 45 | 9 | — | 61 | 5th in Norris | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Total | 280 | 89 | 144 | 47 | — | 225 | 1 | 6 | .143 | 2 playoff appearances | ||
| Source:[11] | ||||||||||||
Awards and achievements
edit- Memorial Cup champion (1955)[5]
- Calder Cup (AHL) champion (1959 and 1969)[9][5]
- AHL Second All-Star Team (1967)[7]
- Les Cunningham Award (AHL) MVP (1967)[4][5]
- AHL First All-Star Team (1968)[7]
- Stanley Cup champion (1974, 1975; as an assistant coach)[5]
References
edit- ^ "Ironman Argo Nykoluk dead at 82". Waterloo Region Record. The Canadian Press. August 2, 2016. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b c "Mike Nykoluk Stats". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b Dobbs, Mary Hill (March 6, 2008). "Under the Sun: Famous neighbor leaves ice rink behind". Naples Daily News. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b c "Mike Nykoluk Hockey Stats and Profile". HockeyDB. The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Former Maple Leafs coach, Hershey Bears star Mike Nykoluk dead at 87". CBC News. The Canadian Press. January 31, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ Hornby, Lance (January 31, 2022). "Former Maple Leafs coach Mike Nykoluk dies at 87". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Mike Nykoluk (1934–2022)". American Hockey League. January 31, 2022. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b "Mike Nykoluk". AHL Hall of Fame. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Nykoluk dies at 87, was first full-time NHL assistant with Flyers". National Hockey League. January 31, 2022. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ Condor, Bob (February 18, 2020). "Call for Assistance". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ a b "Mike Nykoluk NHL & WHA Hockey Coaching Record". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ "Bears Announce Hall of Fame Class of 2018". Hershey Bears. October 25, 2018. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
When fellow Bears Hall of Famer Mike Nykoluk scored, he would play "Hello, Dolly" in honor of the Big Bear's wife, Dolly.
- ^ a b Johnson, Kevin (May 5, 2010). "NHL: Flyers-Bruins brings back memories for Ex-Flyers assistant and Naples resident Nykoluk". Naples Daily News. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- AHL Hockey Hall of Fame bio